


The Hansen-Murphy Map

by Exrong



Category: Dear Evan Hansen - Pasek & Paul/Levenson
Genre: Galaxy Girls later on, Heidi and Cynthia are married, Multi, Soft Kleinsen later on, Stepsiblings!AU, protective!connor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-12
Updated: 2018-04-12
Packaged: 2019-04-21 19:24:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14291757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Exrong/pseuds/Exrong
Summary: “So, how ya doing Cinderella?” Jared smirked.“W-what do you mean?”Jared rolled his eyes. “You’re Cinderella! The evil stepmom, evil stepsibling thing! How is that, by the way?”“Oh.” Evan thought about the apple juice Mrs. Murphy gave him, and the tree notebook Zoe gifted. “Well my stepmom and stepsister aren’t evil.”“You have Connor Murphy as a brother, though,” Jared pointed out. “He, like, threw a printer at our teacher in second grade.”-A series of chronological chapters detailing the blended life of the Hansen-Murphy Household.





	The Hansen-Murphy Map

“Another stellar conversation for the scrapbook  
Another stumble as I’m reaching for the right thing to say  
I’m kinda coming up empty, can’t find my way to you…”

 

~~~ 

 

“Connor, you are not missing the first day of middle school,” Cynthia Murphy said. She flipped over the pancakes she was making and sighed at how burnt they were. “This is a big deal. You should be excited!”

”I already said I’d go tomorrow,” Connor groaned, his frown obscured under an unruly mop of hair. “And it’s not that big of a deal.”

“Give them thirty seconds and watch it all blow apart,” Zoe stage-whispered to Evan across the table.

Cynthia ignored Zoe’s comment. “It is a big deal, Connor!” She assumed that her tone sounded stern enough (or that Connor was too tired to put up a fight), as the younger boy just rolled his eyes and continued eating.

“Connor finished the milk!” Zoe shouted. 

“I did not!” he scowled. Cynthia sighed as food flew from her son’s mouth onto the tablecloth.

“I-I did,” Evan said from his own seat. “I’m sorry.”

“Zoe, just drink some orange juice, Connor, don’t talk with food in your mouth, and Evan, it’s all right,” Cynthia quickly said. “Now, all three of you need to finish breakfast Mrs. Hansen can take you to school.”

“I still don’t get why she has to take us,” Connor grumbled. Cynthia sighed deeply. “Don’t be rude, Connor. You know I have to get to work in a few minutes and your schools are too far away.”

”Why can’t we just ride the bus?” Zoe asked. 

“I don’t want you riding the bus on the first day of school,” his mom explained. “Besides, Mrs. Hansen is taking the time to get pictures, so you better smile fast or it’ll take longer. Evan, sweetie, would you like some apple juice in your lunch?”

“I-I don’t know,” Evan mumbled. 

“Evan doesn’t like apple juice,” Zoe said. “He likes orange juice. No pulp.”

Note: Evan likes no-pulp orange juice, Cynthia thought. She internally smacked herself for not asking before. Despite her attempts, it still seemed like Zoe could understand the anxious boy better than she could.  
With a flick of her wrist, a bottle of orange juice went into Evan’s lunch box. All three lunches are packed and ready.

“How’s my awesome family doing?” a cheery voice called. Cynthia smiled as her wife entered the dining room. 

“Good morning, Zoe,” Heidi said. “And good morning to my boys as well.” She ruffled the heads of Connor and Evan.

Evan grinned brightly at his mother’s touch. “Hi, Mom!”

“Connor, what do you say?” Cynthia asked in a warning tone.

“Hello, Miss Heidi,” Connor muttered, hands moving his hair back into place. 

“How are you, Mrs. Hansen-Murphy?” Heidi whispered into Cynthia ear. Her arms gently wrapped around the other woman’s waist.

Cynthia felt her face warm up at the physical contact. “I’m doing well this morning,” she replied. “Connor is in a bit of a bad mood, though,” she added in a hushed whisper. 

“I’ll try and cheer him up as we drive,” her wife said.

“You guys are gross,” Zoe deadpanned.

“All right, all right. I’ll stop,” she said. “Now, all three of you brush your teeth and grab your backpacks.”

“I’ll meet you guys by the door,” Heidi said as their kids scrambled out of the room. Cynthia gave a quick peck on her wife’s cheek before loading the extra pancakes on a plate. “I made breakfast for both of us. The kids’ lunches are all ready to roll, so you don’t have to worry about that.”

“I love you so much,” Heidi whispered. The two exchanged a kiss before Cynthia broke away, grinning. 

“I love you, too,” she said. “Call me when you’re on your lunch break.”

“I will.”

“Miss Heidi, we’re ready!” They heard Zoe shout. 

“Coming!” Heidi said. She gave one more kiss and grabbed the three lunch boxes on the kitchen counter. “I’ll see you this evening.”

“Have a nice day,” Cynthia said as she watched Heidi go. A bright feeling fluttered in her stomach, relieving the nervous tension previously there. 

Please have a good day, kids, she thought.

-

“So are you all excited for the first day of school?” Heidi asked as she started up the car. She and Cynthia had bought a new one to accommodate their growing family, and although they were worried about the cost of such a large vehicle, they had managed to work it out in the end.

“Connor isn’t,” Zoe said.

“Shut up, Zoe,” Connor snapped.

“Be nice to your sister,” Heidi turned around to face the bickering siblings. “Connor, why aren’t you happy?”

He gave a half-hearted shrug, eyes not meeting hers. Heidi frowned, but didn’t push any further. If there was one thing she learned about Connor, it was that he wouldn’t talk if he didn’t want to.

“What about you, Evan?” she asked, hoping for a more talkative reply.

“I guess I’m excited,” Evan quietly said. 

“C’mon, it’s the first day of middle school-”

“And fifth grade,” Zoe mumbled. 

”-and fifth grade,” Heidi added. “I know it’s scary. I know it’s hard to do. But that doesn’t mean you guys can just give up. I’m sure you’ll make lots of friends this year!”

No response. Heidi fought back a sigh and pulled out of the driveway. 

The rest of the trip was a one-sided conversation between her and the kids, with some side comments from Zoe about a dead armadillo thrown into the mix. She eventually decided to drop the ‘school-subject’, content to just enjoy the peaceful car ride. After about fifteen minutes, Connor and Evan’s middle school appeared in sight.

“I’m glad to see all the parents decided to drop off their kids,” Heidi half-joked. Though in truth, she could have preferred for the parking lot not to be filled to the brim. “All right, here’s what we’re going to do. I’ll pull into the church across the street and you kids hop out. I’ll snap a picture of Connor and Evan and then Zoe and I can leave. The sooner we get in, the sooner we get out. Got it?”

“Sure,” Connor said. He slid the car’s door open and jumped out, the other two children in tow. Together, the four of them made their way across the street to the middle school sign.

“Smile, boys!” Heidi cheerfully said. Her phone camera loudly clicked. “Both of you stay there so that-”

“Connor’s walking away,” Zoe said. Heidi looked up to see the dark-haired boy running toward the school’s gates. Near the sign, Evan stood nervously, his hands fidgeting with the hem of his striped shirt.

“Evan, you can go if you want to,” Heidi said. “Mrs. Kleinman told me that Jared should be getting dropped off in the back of the school in a minute or so.”

Evan didn’t move.

“C’mon, sweetie,” Heidi coaxed. “You can’t stand by the sign forever.”

Evan still didn’t move.

“Here, Evan,” Zoe said as she rummaged in her backpack. “You can have this.” She proudly pulled out a pink notebook and handed it to him. “Look, it has a tree on it. If you get nervous, just look at the tree and think of me.”

Evan softly smiled. “T-thanks, Z-Zoe.”

“Are you okay to go now?” Heidi asked.

Evan nodded. 

“Good. I know you’ll do wonderful today.” She gave him a tight hug. Together with Zoe, the two of them watched as Evan slowly walked toward the school’s main entrance.

“I’m glad Evan has you watching out for him,” Heidi said to Zoe. Her stepdaughter merely continued stare. “Now let’s go. You don’t want to be late for your first day of school.”

“Do you think you’ll like fifth grade?” Heidi asked as they pulled up to the elementary school. 

Zoe stared at the window, a bored look plastered on her face. “I dunno. Maybe.”

“I’m sure you’ll make lots of friends,” Heidi said.

”You don’t have to be nice to me,” Zoe blurted.

Heidi turned around in her seat. “What do you mean?”

“I know you married my mom and stuff,” Zoe explained, “But you don’t have to be nice to me because of that. With Connor, I get it, because he kinda doesn’t like you, but I’m okay with you. So you don’t have to be fake nice because you want me to like you.”

“I-”

“I just want it to be normal,” Zoe sighed. “’Cause you being nice to me makes me feel weird and-”

“Zoe,” Heidi interrupted. “I’m not trying to be ‘fake nice’ to you. I want to be nice because you’re my daughter now.”

“I’m not your daughter,” Zoe muttered. Heidi winced at her suddenly bitter tone. “I mean-it's just. I’m smart. I know I can’t really change you and my mom marrying. But I kinda want to be left alone about it, okay?” She quickly unfastened her seatbelt and pulled open the car door. “I have to go.”

“Have a nice day.”

Zoe froze, and Heidi wished that she could understand the flurry of emotions that rushed across her daughter’s face. But before she could get out another word, Zoe grabbed her lunchbox and slammed the door shut. 

“That could have gone better,” Heidi sighed as Zoe disappeared out of sight. “So much for a good year’s start…”


End file.
